Change is in the Air

As I write this in the third week of September, the heat of summer is already starting to seem like a dream. The sun is shining outside my window, but it’s only in the mid-50s. By now, we’ve had a couple of killing frosts here in northern Vermont. One day our zucchini plants were still producing fruit at an alarming rate; the next they were blackened and dead. Fortunately I froze some shredded zucchini, so I can still make double chocolate zucchini bread, though I think it will be a few months before I can bear the thought of it again.

The leaves are starting to change color, and on my lunchtime walk I spotted the train that will be offering rides to attendees at an upcoming fall foliage festival.

Another sure sign that the season is changing? We finally had to cave and turn the heat on at home. Wearing your big fluffy bathrobe over your clothes to stay warm will only get you so far.

Autumn is surely upon us (and will be well advanced by the time you read this), but that’s not the only change around here. Did you happen to notice our shiny new tagline on the cover this month? We wanted the tagline to reflect our status as the only B2B publication serving both the fruit and vegetable industries.

We also wanted it to capture the idea that commercial vegetable and fruit production isn’t just a job for our readers. It’s a passion, a livelihood, a lifestyle, a commitment, a way of life. Your hours don’t fit neatly into the 9 to 5 box, and while you might have a “real” office in a building with a desk, your office is also just as likely to be in the cab of a tractor. There’s so much at stake in every endeavor from seed to shipping container, not just for you as a grower, but for the consumers who rely on you to put food on their tables.

We’ve also added a social media page in this issue (which you’ll see over there to the right on page 3). It’s more important than ever to stay connected in the digital world.

You’ll see more changes for Growing in the coming months. But one thing that will never change is our dedication to providing you, our readers, with a magazine that offers information and stories you can use to cultivate your business, one that you’ll keep coming back to.